Greetings from scotland.

[Jekyll40]

Hello friends. I'm just 4 days into my Veganism, and it's proving quite an eye opener. My reasons for giving up meat were largely selfish. I'm 78 and I want to live to 90 (or more)! Of course now I'm feeling smug because I gather I am also saving the planet. Win, win.
Problems - my digestive system seems to have been taken by surprise (I need to stay near the bog), and I had a dizzy spell yesterday. Normal, or result of being ancient?
Anyway, I"m not going back to meat or dairy whatever. Can't afford the beastly stuff, for one thing.
Any hints on the (slight) problems mentioned?
Vive la revolution!

 

[Veganite]

Welcome from BC, Canada!

Congrats on your transition to veganism and/or a whole foods plant-based diet. It is likely the latter you wish to adapt, if you wish to live to 100.

While a vegan diet can certainly be healthy as well, it opens the door for other not so healthy foods. After all, most beers are vegan, as are Oreo cookies. So you get my point. The lifestyle that helps you live longer is still vegan, but consists of whole foods that are entirely plant-based. So nothing processed, including oils. In fact, oil is probably the single most harmful processed food. They, as in the mainstream plant-based doctors, suggest no salt, oil, and sugar, with a true WFPB diet for optimum health.

I'd suggest educating yourself on the lifestyle as much as possible. Watch everything you can about WFPB living on YouTube, and Google all your questions too. There's some amazing documentaries I'd suggest as well. They can help educate as well as keep you motivated.

As for the digestive problems, these are extremely common when beginning a WFPB diet. Make sure you rinse your canned beans thoroughly, or better yet, use dry beans, and soak, rinse, and cook them properly. Many of the veggies and legumes you eat will cause slight bloating and gas. You will eventually build a tolerance to them. It will get better.

A few great documentaries to watch are: Forks Over Knives, Cowspiracy, Eating You Alive, What The Health, and Earthlings (graphic). Most of these are available on Netflix, except for Eating You Alive and Earthlings. Earthlings is on YouTube. Earthlings gives you a peek inside factory farming. As I mentioned, it is very graphic, but is the hard truth about factory farming.

Some great plant-based doctors to research: Neal Barnard, Caldwell Esselstyn, Colin Campbell, John McDougall, Michael Greger, Michael Klaper, and many many more.

I'm going to include a few videos for you, as well as some great YT channels, but please, go on YouTube yourself and seek out all the relevant channels and subscribe. There's way more than I'm including here. Best of luck with your new lifestyle.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCddn8dUxYdgJz3Qr5mjADtA
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_U4GPaCE59IDIqAOsvQMgQ
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh2D2ss44sKdb6l7iGU7eLg
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsudrjn6IxMFxIsgyA_HzSQ
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkVtuE3WR0NhNnDiP5d_pAA
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGJq0eQZoFSwgcqgxIE9MHw
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeckeH_lF6uh8i37YK7P46g
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjT_puAbUNfU_LUONgr0xkw
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh2CcI5FT661MGIrZCxNeTw
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuwi1gSKyqz28BVCc9qeuIA

 

[Lou]

Probably the most common complaint among transitioning vegans is bloating, gas and sometimes diarrhea.

Several of the doctors who promote veganism explain it something like this.

Your gut flora is made of hundreds or maybe thousands of different species of bacteria. It's a complicated ecosystem. The bacteria compete and cooperate with each other. and then eat fiber. When going from a low fiber diet to a high fiber diet you upset the balance that they have established. They need to reach a new equilibrium. In the meantime, things are quite unsettled.

Most people transitioning get better between 3 days and 3 weeks.

For immediate relief, you can just back off the fiber and reintroduce it back into your diet slower.

I'm almost sure a high-quality probiotic is a good idea. Not one of those that have just one or two species of bacteria but one of the really good (expensive) ones that have at least 8.

another remedy that seems to work is to buy a package of Bean-O. It contains an enzyme that helps your body digest fiber. reducing the amount of fiber that is available to the bacteria.

Oh, by the way. Congrats for going vegan and welcome to the forum.

 

[Jekyll40]

Thank you Veganite and Lou. That's all very helpful and encouraging.
I've watched Forks Over Knives and What The Health. Blimey! I don't need any more convincing that this is the way to go.
Live long and prosper!

 

[Veganite]

Live long and prosper!

May the Force be with you

 

[Kellyr]

Welcome

I'd add, too, to make sure you're staying well hydrated. Any time you increase the amount of fiber you're consuming, you should also make sure you're drinking lots of water.

But as others mentioned, it's ok to back off the high-fiber foods for a bit to give your body some time to adjust.

Most omnivorous western diets are lucky to get around 10-15 grams of fiber in their daily menu. I average around 35-50 grams daily. If you jump from the low end to the high end in a short amount of time, you can bet your body's going to freak out a bit.

 

[Jekyll40]

Thanks, Kellyr, that's useful advice. A few days in and my gut is adapting quite quickly. I don't have much in the way of cooking facilities, so I'm mostly eating raw. Porage I can do in the microwave.
I can't see a way of eating legumes raw, though. Are tinned baked beans a good idea?

 

[Lou]

Canned beans are great. Rinse them first. I make salads for lunch that include at least 2 kinds of beans and peas and sometimes corn.

 

[Jekyll40]

Hi Lou. Maybe slight misunderstanding here. I was thinking of canned beans in tomato sauce - Heinz or whatever. Already cooked.
And what do you mean by corn, exactly? Is this what I would (in my old-fashioned way) call "corn on the cob"?

 

[Lou]

No, I know what you meant. I guess I answered your question too broadly. come to think of it..... you do have to be careful with "Baked Beans". Many of the brands are flavored with pork. But around here the cans that are vegetarian are clearly labeled as such. But you can always check the ingredients. Oh. and you don't have to rinse baked beans.

So here in the USA they take corn on the cob and remove the cob and put the kernels in a can. In fact, corn and baked beans are very popular together - usually as side dishes when eating hot dogs and hamburgers.

Peas are legumes too. and they too come in cans. And the canned peas are already cooked. so you can eat them cold if you want. As I mentioned earlier, i add them to salads.

You can also make a "bean salad" with canned beans.
Here is a recipe
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/14169/mexican-bean-salad/

 

[Jekyll40]

Thanks, Lou, that's very helpful. I've just watched a video which mentions that legumes seem to be the foods which contribute most to longevity. Beans, here I come!